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Mr Morrow said he expected the market to be driven by local earnings results for the rest of the week, with little action anticipated on European and US markets during the northern summer break.

NAB disappoints investors

Shares in National Australia Bank fell 1.4 per cent to $24.70 after it reported flat third-quarter cash profit. The result was shy of expectations due to high funding costs, weak results for its UK operations and slow loan growth.

More broadly, the market lacked fresh direction ahead of key economic data due out of Europe and the United States later in the day.

"There is more of a wait-and-see type outlook. We are at the top end of the recent trading range and earnings so far are reasonably good," Mr Morrow said.

Shares in Aquila Resources slumped 7.9 per cent to $2.23 after a newspaper report the company is pulling back from spending on its $6 billion Pilbara iron ore project because of falling prices. The loss followed a 10 per cent slide on Monday despite a resource upgrade for the project.

"There is probably not the pressing need for another major iron ore project anywhere in the world, let alone the Pilbara," said Mr Morrow.

Among the major miners, BHP Billiton was six cents higher at $32.95 and Rio Tinto was down eight cents at $56.52.

Goodman Fielder jumps

Shares in Australia's largest listed food company, Goodman Fielder, jumped 8.2 per cent to 53 cents after it reported a smaller full-year net loss on Tuesday.

BlueScope Steel extended Monday's gains on positive analyst reaction to its plans to partner with Nippon Steel. The shares rose 12.9 per cent to 39.5 cents and topped the most actives list, trading on seven times average daily volume.

Gloves and condoms maker Ansell jumped 3.2 per cent after posting results in line with estimates. Shares in online advertiser Carsales.com jumped 8.3 per cent after the company reported a 23 per cent rise in full-year net profit and paid a special dividend.